Cardboard Christmas

I am working on a reproduction and I noticed that so many of the pictures of the originals the base surface is applied and the house sits on top. I have always glued my house on the base prior to adding the coconut, sand or gravel then I add it right up to the house to fill in any space between the house and the base. I always thought it looked neat and kept the light from shining through any spaces.

Can anyone share how you make your reproductions and are the originals made both ways?

Thanks for any help

I do it your way too and looking at my small collection of older buildings it would appear they were also done that way. I never thought of doing it in reverse, but it’ll be interesting to hear other reader observations.

I also glue on my house first and then apply base finish. Most of my older houses are the same because you can see the finish running a little way up the side of the house. Also, when you remove the house from the base you can usually see an unfinished outline of the the house on the base. Hope that helps.